Haryana | What prompted Rahul Gandhi to cobble up Congress-AAP alliance
AAP is the first choice of Congress leaders denied tickets, who may try to jump parties; by tying up with AAP, Congress is plugging that hole
Ahead of elections to the 90-member Haryana Assembly, nearly, 2,500 applications for nomination landed up at the desk of Congress selectors. Many ticket-seekers thronged the AICC office in Delhi with supporters to plead their case. This not only stalled the release of names of candidates but also led to other fears among the top brass.
Soon, disappointment in the case of non-selection and the likely course to be taken by unsuccessful ticket-applicants became the main concern of the candidate-selection committee.
The possibility of rebel candidates filing nomination in quite a few Haryana constituencies against Congress’ official candidate looked plausible. This was conveyed to the party higher-ups.
The Congress strategy
Thus, Congress star and strategist Rahul Gandhi had to take the call. He suggested that the Congress’ election managers explore the possibility of an electoral understanding with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), a key partner in the INDIA alliance.
Congress insiders say that in the event of no tie-up, the chances of failed Congress hopefuls turning to the AAP were thought to be quite high.
An alliance with the AAP was thought to be the best bet against some of the “would-be Congress rebels” to take another party’s tag or symbol and jeopardize the chances of Congress candidates. This is how the Congress, in the nick of the time, approached the AAP for seat-sharing in Haryana.
AAP in Haryana
Though the AAP has little presence in Haryana, its jailed leader Arvind Kejriwal’s wife Sunita has been visiting parts of the state with local AAP leaders to announce the party’s electoral entry.
Kejriwal was born in Haryana. The AAP may use his jailing, in the backdrop of his tussle with the BJP government over the Delhi excise policy, to gain the sympathy of Haryana voters.
Earlier, AAP leaders had said their party would contest all the 90 Assembly seats in Haryana. This was even when the AAP could hardly have found suitable candidates in all the constituencies.
In such a scenario, some candidates denied tickets by the Congress could have found easy entry and Assembly seats through the AAP. But a Congress-AAP alliance is going to pre-empt any such possibility.
Urban-rural divide in Haryana
There are other factors that favoured an electoral tie-up. Among these is the fact that the Congress's support base in rural Haryana is said to be stronger than in urban areas, where the BJP is believed to have an edge.
This even though rural folks have often been migrating to cities, and the distinction between urban and rural is not as strong in Haryana as in Bihar or Uttar Pradesh.
But even the relative edge that the BJP may have in Haryana’s cities could be challenged better by a Congress-supported AAP in some places, instead of the Congress and AAP challenging the BJP separately in urban areas.
Infighting in Congress
It is well-known fact that the Congress greatly suffers from infighting among its state leaders in Haryana. The soaring ambitions of these leaders are thought to be the main reason behind this.
Confronting the warring factional leaders or the new business of alliance-making speaks about the value of understanding, accommodation and showing grace. The Congress nationally has so far failed to drive this home among its state satraps.
So, the alliance with the AAP may not only mark a new beginning but also eventually widen the options available to the Congress’s central party leaders in Haryana to rein in their state counterparts.
More tie-ups may follow
The new alliance, seen from the viewpoint of the AAP, is likely to provide the youngest national party in the country a surer foothold in Haryana than if it were to contest the state battle alone.
This is how the AAP’s Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh has welcomed the Congress move for an alliance.
Moreover, Haryana stands between Delhi and Punjab, where the AAP has its governments. It is also likely to open up the possibility of further understanding of the party with the Congress in Delhi, Gujarat and may be a few more states in the times to come.
This can well be better for the AAP than fighting the Congress and giving the BJP a leeway in elections. This is why both the AAP and Congress are keen to reinforce INDIA bloc as an electoral force via next month’s battle for power in Haryana.
In any case, the Congress and the AAP fought the Lok Sabha elections this year together in Haryana and Delhi although they took on each other in Punjab. The Congress fought in nine seats and the AAP in one seat in Haryana; in Delhi, the Congress contested three seats and the AAP four.Gautam's move
Meanwhile, AAP's former Delhi minister Rajendra Pal Gautam has joined the Congress. The MLA from Seemapuri in East Delhi said on Friday (September 6) that he was joining the grand old party because of its leaders Rahul Gandhi and its Mallikarjun Kharge's staunch support for the cause of the poor, Dalits, STs and minorities, who have of late been getting a raw deal at the hands of the Centre and several state governments.
Gautam has been in controversy for his repeated attacks on the dominant Hindutva view. Two years ago he resigned from AAP's ministry in Delhi. Ever since he has been on the margins of the Capital's politics and his entry into Congress from AAP will not affect the relationship of the two parties, say sources.